Main » United States missions in Turkey to resume full visa services after row

United States missions in Turkey to resume full visa services after row

28 December 2017

"Within the framework of the principle of reciprocity, the restrictions placed from our side on the visa regime for USA citizens are being lifted simultaneously", it said in a statement, following an announcement by the United States embassy in Ankara that full visa services for Turkish citizens were being restored.

They were restored after Turkey assured US authorities that no other local employees were under investigation and that local staffers wouldn't be detained for doing their jobs, the embassy said in a statement Thursday.

The US decision to stop handing out visas was implemented from October and was followed by a tit-for-tat move by Turkey to stop giving Turkish visas to Americans.

Earlier, the US Embassy in Ankara said in a statement that the issuance of non-immigrant visas to Turkish citizens will be resumed in January 2019, Trend reports.

The announcement comes roughly two months after the department announced it would suspend visa services in the country following a USA consulate employee's arrest in Istanbul. It added that Turkey also followed through on assurances that Washington would be informed in advance if authorities meant to detain other staff members in the future.

Metin Topuz, a long-standing consulate employee, was arrested over alleged ties to the Fetullah Terrorist Organization, the group behind last year's coup attempt in Turkey. The U.S. Embassy denied the allegations against them. The Turkish Embassy, however, said it had provided no such assurances.